The present invention relates to surveillance equipment and, more particularly, to a deployable monitoring device having a self-righting housing and associated method.
In certain situations, it may be highly desirable and advantageous to have a close-up view of a particular location or scene from the safety of a remote vantage point. For example, in a hostage situation or in a stand-off with a suspect barricaded in a building or compound, law enforcement officials must often rely on binoculars or other telescopic devices for visual monitoring of the scene. However, such visual devices are generally only useful where a clear line of sight and/or sufficient ambient light is available. Helicopters or other airborne devices may be useful in some situations, but the expense, difficult and limited deployment capabilities, obtrusiveness, and limited visual access associated with these airborne devices generally limits the effectiveness of these devices in such situations. In addition, alternate or supplemental monitoring capabilities may also be desirable, but limited by access to the scene. For example, aural monitoring may be performed by magnifying or xe2x80x9ceavesdropperxe2x80x9d microphones from a distant surveillance point. However, the effectiveness of such devices may be limited by extraneous noise therebetween. In other instances, chemical monitoring of the scene, for example, may also be advantageous so as to provide advanced warning of any noxious chemicals on the scene.
In many instances, the immediate and transient nature of these situations precludes the establishment of permanent monitoring provisions on the scene. For example, the aforementioned hostage or stand-off situations are instantaneous and unpredictable and may occur in a wide variety of sometimes-inaccessible locales. Other situations which present similar concerns may include, for example, industrial or otherwise inaccessible accident sites, remote areas where reports of poaching having been received, or areas where enemy troop movement or activity is suspected.
Thus, there exists a need for a monitoring device capable of allowing close-up visual monitoring of a scene from the safety of a vantage point disposed remotely from the scene. Such a monitoring device should desirably be portable, unobtrusive, and capable of being expediently deployed by various mechanisms, when and where necessary. The monitoring device should also be configured so as to be readily modified to provide enhanced monitoring capabilities such as, for example, aural and chemical monitoring. When deployed, the monitoring device should be sufficiently rugged to survive the deployment thereof in proper working order, while also being capable of withstanding the environment at the scene. Such a monitoring device should also desirably provide a 360 degree field of view of the immediate scene around the device. In some instances, it may also be advantageous for functions of the monitoring device to be configured so as to be controllable from the remotely disposed station.
The above and other needs are met by the present invention which, in one embodiment, provides a deployable monitoring apparatus comprising an ovate housing and a video capturing device operably engaged therewith. The housing has a base and an opposed end disposed along an axis. The housing is further configured to have a center of gravity disposed about the base so as to be self-righting along the axis such that the opposed end extends substantially upwardly from the base. The video capturing device is operably engaged with the housing and is configured to capture video data of a scene external to the housing. In some instances, the video data of the scene may be transmitted by a transceiver module to a station disposed remotely from the scene and configured to process the video data so as to provide a visual depiction of the scene. The housing may also include other devices such as, for example, a light source, a motion sensor, an audio sensor, and a chemical sensor functioning independently of or in conjunction with the video capturing device.
Another advantageous aspect of the present invention comprises a method of viewing a scene from a station disposed remotely thereto. A monitoring apparatus is first deployed to the scene, wherein video data of the scene is then received at the remotely disposed station from the monitoring apparatus to thereby provide a remote visual depiction of the scene. According to one embodiment of the present invention, the monitoring apparatus comprises a video capturing device and a transceiver module operably engaged therewith, wherein the video capturing device and the transceiver module are disposed within a self-righting ovate housing. The transceiver module may send the video data to the station via a wireless communication link. The monitoring apparatus may further comprise, for example, a light source for illuminating the scene, a motion sensor for detecting motion within the scene, an audio sensor for providing aural monitoring of the scene, and a chemical sensor for providing chemical monitoring of the scene.
Thus, embodiments of the present invention provide a monitoring device capable of allowing close-up visual monitoring of a scene from the safety of a station disposed remotely from the scene, wherein the monitoring device is portable, unobtrusive, and can be expediently deployed by various mechanisms, when and where necessary. Embodiments of the invention further provide a self-righting housing with one or more video capturing devices disposed therein. Such a monitoring device attains an advantageous upright orientation upon deployment to thereby allow the one or more video capturing devices to provide a 360 degree field of view of the immediate scene around the device to the remotely disposed monitoring station. Further embodiments of the monitoring device are configured so as to be readily modified to provide enhanced monitoring capabilities such as, for example, aural and chemical monitoring. When deployed, the monitoring device is configured to be sufficiently rugged to survive the deployment in proper working order, as well as capable of withstanding the environment at the scene. In some instances, functions of the monitoring device are advantageously configured to be controllable from the remotely disposed station.